[NTLUG:Discuss] OT: Hz

[Fred James]

OT: Hz

Question:  Is there an reasonably simple, reasonably inexpensive, way to 
monitor the electric input (voltage, but particularly Hz) in one's home?

Reason for question:
Not long ago I read an article (in the UK press) in which electric 
companies (TXU for one) admitted that (without any fanfare) they were 
going to lower the standards as regards Hz ... going to loosen up a bit 
and allow the cycles per second to fluctuate over a wider range (+/-), 
because they could save quite a bit of money that way.  Everyone 
admitted that they had no idea of exactly what the impact would be ... 
although they suspected that clocks (plugged in to the wall) would no 
longer keep accurate time, they were particularly in the dark as to what 
might happen to electronics and appliances with embedded systems (DVD 
players for one obvious example).

Recently some of our appliances have been exhibiting behavior that lead 
to us preforming various diagnostic test, with the result that there 
does not appear to be any internal problem(s).  We even went through the 
costly steps of replacing some parts that one might expect from the 
symptoms, with no change in behavior.  Further, the behavior in question 
is far more erratic than one might expect in these cases.

Thank you in advance for any help you may be able to offer
Regards
Fred James